--Originally Posted 10/10/13--

[Editor's Note: Again, this post was not particularly about utilizing the Revell Arizona mold - however it does show a kitbash of Arkansas from this kit to be quite feasible, below.]

Like virtually all the other USN Old BBs in WWII, Arkansas was serially refitted - with her most interesting configuration (IMHO) being her last:


Click on Image for FULL-RESThis view from perfectly (orthogonally) abeam was captured 11/5/44, luckily - and lucky I was, to find it - revealing substantial inaccuracies (which it was then used to correct) in several of the most commonly-available drawings (which were REALLY off - be so advised!).

Arkansas did not have exactly the above fit (nor disruptive camo) when she supported the D-Day landings - however this was the fit in which she attended the subsequent landings at Iwo Jima and Okinawa - again, in yet a third camo scheme:


Click on Image to EnlargeSeen here on 1/1/45 - about a month before Iwo Jima - Arkie has just been repainted in overall Navy Blue (5N), in which she would serve out the rest of the Pacific War.

With the precise fit/period of interest determined, an appropriate drawing was then be obtained, for graphic comparison against readily available/affordable models - kitbashing candidates in- and around (as always, with me) 500-600 scale:


Click on Image to EnlargeHere, I compare my corrected line-drawing of Arkansas - the plan-view (milky overlays) - against four kits, the former resized in each case to match the maximum beam of the model - each of which in turn, has been scaled to be in true proportion to the others.

Note Arkansas was a stubbier ship than virtually all these models - nevertheless, each mold does show (at least) one area of significant match with Arkansas: three of them towards the aft end, and a sole contrarian - Royal Sovereign - matching almost perfectly (disregarding the minor scalloping of the casemates) right forward. Surprisingly, the match for Arizona - the sole USN candidate - with a fantail admittedly a near-perfect match for Arkansas, overall otherwise does not appear to match Arkansas especially better than do the other (all RN) candidates - particularly Warspite, which may indeed present the best general match.

Irrespective of which may be easiest/best, the above kitbashes will produce Arkansas' with the following characteristics:

- From Revell ARIZONA => 14.9" LWL, 1:454 scale ARKANSAS
- From Revell (ex-FROG) RoyalSOVEREIGN => 13.2" LWL, 1:511 scale ARKANSAS
- From Airfix WARSPITE => 11.4" LWL, 1:593 scale ARKANSAS
- From Airfix IronDUKE => 10.6" LWL, 1:638 scale ARKANSAS


Note these options span the range between (just a hair smaller than) 450- to (about) 600-scales. The concept using the Revell Arizona will, at 1:454 yield an Arkansas just 6.2% smaller-scale than - i.e., about perfectly compatible with - your existing Revell Arizona. However, again the Airfix Warspite option stands out, at 593-scale, as matching even closer (just 1.1% oversized) against your other 600-scale collection - including Warspite herself, alongside whom Arkie participated at D-Day).

Also fitting notably well - including around the casemate gun-decks, forward - was the Royal Sovereign conversion, and (also as the second-largest-sized kitbash) I examined her option in more detail, along with that of the Revell Arizona, in the following "graphic dry-fitting":


Click on Image for FULL-RESNote, perhaps surprisingly that each of these hulls, starting out considerably longer than Arkansas, ends up - after chopping into 5 sections, with 3 leftovers (blue-gray) - leaving a substantial gap (pink) amidships, roughly abaft Arkansas' 6th main-battery turret. For both, this is due to the ends - particularly the bows - being strongly telescoped inward, to reposition as many as possible major features - turret barbettes, lower superstructure levels, gun casemates and hull-sides, etc. - corrrectly for Arkansas. Although - particularly for Arizona - over-extensions (green) may appear to indicate severe mismatches, in fact these can probably be faired-in relatively easily (and probably very effectively), wherever they occur over the hull blisters. Meantime, the above gap - again, in both kitbashes - occurs in a flush stretch of deck, very easy to fill using "v"-groove plasticard, with essentially just a single (main-battery) turret on it. Thus, both these kitbashes appear quite do-able - though the Royal Sovereign does clearly appear simpler/easier. In any case, to do either of these, print out the FULL-RESOLUTION version at 170.42dpi (labelled in the graphic, but not above).

Of all the USN Old BBs, an Arkansas kitbash would suffer least from shifting away from the Revell Arizona, in favor of using one of the above RN BBs. Not least for the fact that Arkansas' older-style, blocky (twin-gunned) turrets least resemble Arizona's more modern, conformal (and triple-gunned) ones. Indeed all the above together suggests the Airfix Warspite option (though still remaining to be confirmed) might well be the best/easiest of the lot, for bashing (a 1:600) Arkansas. And, for you yet-smaller-scale modelers, remember the Iron Duke (also still to be analyzed) already has a fifth barbette, amidships!

So, stay tuned for those - and, if any of you Big Guns out there decide to do- or have already done - any of the above conversions, do pipe up and let us know.


Cheers,

- Matty